SOME 200,000 council and school workers across England and Wales are due to begin voting on pay strikes today, Unison has said.

Walkouts at more than 500 employers could begin early in the autumn if workers back industrial action after a four-week ballot.

It follows the union’s rejection of a 3.3 per cent pay offer from local government employers, which it says falls well short of restoring the value of staff pay after years of decline.

Unison general secretary Andrea Egan said: “Council and school workers kept vital services running through years of brutal austerity, with rising demand and relentless pressure. They deserve far better than another pay offer leaving them falling ever further behind.

“This huge ballot is the direct consequence of employers expecting staff to accept less while delivering more, year after year. That’s taken a growing toll on workers, on local services and on the communities depending on them.

“No-one chooses lightly to take strike action. And there’s still time for employers to improve this pay offer and avoid a dispute.

“Failing that, it should come as no surprise if workers decide the only way left to secure the fair pay and respect they deserve is to walk out.”

Teaching assistants, social workers, waste collection staff, trading standards teams, housing officers and librarians are among those being balloted until August 6.

Staff have seen the value of their wages fall by an average of around 26 per cent since 2010 when adjusted for inflation, Unison says.

A teaching assistant has lost the equivalent to around £7,000 in lost real-terms pay and a social worker as much as £18,000, the union says.